


Kiss the Boy

by xo_stardust720



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Disney AU, F/M, Little Mermaid AU, fluff fluff fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-09
Updated: 2018-06-09
Packaged: 2019-05-19 23:33:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14883368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xo_stardust720/pseuds/xo_stardust720
Summary: “I know how we can get your voice back!” Lila tugged on Steve’s hand, and Steve had to smile at the hope that lingered in little Lila’s voice. “We need to find your true love! You need true love’s kiss!”[aka, Steve meets the girl of his dreams in the most unconventional way.]





	Kiss the Boy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Swietek93](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Swietek93/gifts).



> Many thanks to @mylifeisloki for all the advice and for being able to beta this fic last minute. Love you so much!!!
> 
> Based on this [ prompt](http://xo-stardust720.tumblr.com/private/image/174702846225/tumblr_pa0wb2Qeda1qe95yn) that [swietek93](http://swietek93.tumblr.com/) posted on tumblr. Hope it lives up to your expectations! :D

_There you see her_

_Sitting there across the way_

_She don't got a lot to say_

_But there's something about her_

_And you don't know why_

_But you're dying to try_

_You wanna kiss the girl_

_-_ The Little Mermaid 'Kiss the Girl'

 

 

 

“Dude, you look like shit.”

Steve raised his head from where it was resting against the counter and gave Sam the biggest glare of death that he could muster in his condition.

Sam just gave him a cheeky grin. “Rough night?”

His head was pounding, his throat was dry, and more than anything at this point in time, Steve wished that the ground would just open up, swallow him whole, and put him out of his misery.

When he had woken up that Sunday morning to his alarm blaring, Steve’s first instinct had been to call in sick to work. But after a few minutes of lazing around buried in his blankets, his sense of guilt had kicked in and with a groan, Steve had dutifully risen from his comfortable position and went in for his shift at the Disney Store. There were some days when Steve cursed the fact that Bucky and Sam were his best friends, and today was definitely one of them. As far as he was concerned, it was completely their fault that he was in this predicament in the first place!

(“Come on, Steve! College is supposed to be about new experiences, and you can’t spend your entire time here studying!”

“I have to work tomorrow, Buck! I’ve got the morning shift. Parties happen all the time; can’t we just go to another one some other time?”

“But this is _Thor’s_ party! _Everyone_ knows that Thor’s parties are epic!”)

And thus, Steve had allowed himself to be dragged to what was being deemed as _one of the best parties of the year_. One beer had turned into two, then three, and before he knew what was happening, Steve was winning at beer pong. Last night had definitely been fun.

This morning? Not so much.

To top it off, last night’s activities had involved a lot of yelling and laughing, and it had resulted in this morning’s hardship: his voice was practically gone, and all that was left was a pretty sore throat. This was just slightly problematic because as it turned out, he actually needed to be able to talk in order to do his job properly. Communicating with just body language was a lot harder than he had anticipated.

Steve let his head flop back against the counter but raised his hand in a rude gesture for Sam’s comment. _How_ was it possible that Sam was this chipper in the morning? How was he even functioning? Steve was pretty sure the guy had drank twice as much as he did last night.

“Oooh,” Sam teased. “Boy, are you ever grouchy when you’re hungover.” He stood, stretching his arms as he prepared to leave - probably heading towards his own job at the Nike store on the other side of the mall. “See you later, Steve.”

The store was fairly quiet for a Sunday, something that Steve was thankful for. There were a few kids roaming around, but a quick glance told Steve that his co-worker Darcy could more than handle it. Sometimes a break from dealing with customers was nice too. He spent the next couple of hours working at a relaxed pace, stocking shelves and making sure the displays were all neat and tidy.

“Hi, Mister!”

At the sound of the sweet voice, Steve looked over to see a young girl standing next to him, giving him a wide toothless smile and looking as cute as can be. Her hair was tied up in two braids, she was dressed in a sparkly blue Elsa princess dress, and she looked to be about four years old. It wasn’t an uncommon sight to see children dressed up as their favorite characters. After all, it was the Disney Store; dressing up in costumes was pretty much encouraged. Steve smiled warmly at her and waved hello. He then lifted his gaze from the little girl and glanced around, frowning slightly when he noticed she was alone.

“Mommy and Daddy are next door buying some diapers for our new baby brother,” the girl explained when she saw Steve’s questioning gaze. “They said we could wait here until they’re finished. My big brother Cooper is over there looking at the Star Wars toys.”

Steve looked over to where the girl was pointing, and sure enough, there was a boy about seven years old, busy looking excited over their new Star Wars Millennium Falcon Lego Set. Every now and then, older siblings were allowed to spend time at the store on their own with their parents permission while they took the time to get things done as quickly as they could. Steve didn’t mind. He was good with kids and generally they were well behaved.

“Mommy said I can pick a toy for the new baby. Can you help me get that Olaf? It’s too high up and I can’t reach.”

He stood and grabbed the plushie toy that the little girl was pointing at. The smile on her face became even wider as he passed it to her, and she hugged the quirky snowman to her chest. Steve chuckled soundlessly. The girl was all kinds of adorable.

“Thanks, Mister!”

Steve grinned and gave her a thumbs up.

The girl’s expression suddenly became concerned and she looked at him inquisitively. She tilted her head slightly and a little furrow between her eyebrows formed as she stared at him intensely. “Hey Mister… are you okay? Can’t you talk?”

His lips twitched and he had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing out loud. Instead, Steve shrugged his shoulders, pointed to his throat, and shook his head. Immediately, the girl’s eyes widened and she looked troubled. “But why can’t you talk?”

Quickly, Steve grabbed his notepad that was sitting by the cash register and wrote something down. He held it out to the little girl. She glanced at it, frowning cutely when she couldn’t make out any of the words he had written. “Cooper!” she turned around, calling out to her brother and waving at him frantically.

The little boy reluctantly tore his attention away from the Star Wars display and made his way over to where the two of them stood. “What’s wrong Lila?”

“Cooper! He can’t talk! Something’s wrong. Can you read what he wrote?”

Cooper looked over his sister’s shoulder. “My name is Steve,” he read out loud. “I can’t speak because Ursula the sea witch stole my voice, but I’m happy to assist you!”

Lila let out a gasp and if possible, her eyes widened even more. She clutched Olaf even tighter to her chest, looking devastated at Steve’s predicament. Cooper, on the other hand, didn’t look quite as convinced. “Really…?” he trailed off, looking at Steve doubtfully.

Steve shrugged. Apparently his idea wasn’t as brilliant as he thought. He hadn’t anticipated that Cooper would be at the age where he wouldn’t be quite as gullible as his sister.

“I know how we can get your voice back!” Lila tugged on Steve’s hand, and Steve had to smile at the hope that lingered in little Lila’s voice. “We need to find your true love! You need true love’s kiss!”

“I don’t think that would work, Lila,” Cooper announced, crossing his arms. “How do we even know Ursula is real? We’ve never even seen her.”

“Of course it would work! It worked for Ariel!” Lila tugged on Steve’s hand, and began pulling. “Ursula is very tricky. She could be hiding in plain sight and you would never even know! Do you have a true love, Steve?”

Steve shook his head and allowed Lila to begin dragging him around the store, stopping after taking just a few steps. He watched as Lila surveyed their surroundings, finding that the store was mostly filled with couples with their children, save for the three of them. By now everyone’s eyes were on them, as Lila didn’t trouble herself with keeping her voice down. Darcy was conveniently out of Lila’s line of sight, though Steve could see his co-worker hidden in the dark corner of the store laughing to herself as she watched them. Lila turned to Steve with a slightly panicked expression. “Steve, where are we gonna find your true love? Everybody in here already has theirs!”

“Maybe we can go to the food court,” Cooper chimed in, now completely caught up in the situation. Lila’s enthusiasm was catching on and it seemed Cooper wanted to help him find his voice again. “There’s always lots of people there. What if his true love works there?”

Steve let out a quiet sigh as he tried to think of a good solution. As harmless as he thought his little joke was in the beginning, he clearly hadn’t thought things through. How could he have known that Lila and Cooper would’ve latched onto the idea of getting his voice back? Briefly, he contemplated telling the truth but one glance at Lila and her hopeful expression, and Steve knew there was no way he could disillusion them.

“Lila! Cooper! Where are you guys? Come on, it’s time to leave!” A man’s voice echoed through the shop, and Steve let out a relieved breath. _What a lucky break._ Both Lila and Cooper looked extremely disappointed as their father appeared and beckoned them towards him. “We’re gonna grab some lunch - your mom’s already waiting for us at the food court.”

The siblings looked at one another with glee. Lila let go of Steve’s hand and ran up to her father. “Daddy! Can Steve come with us? We need to find his true love!”

A confused look crossed the man’s features, and Steve could his face burn red hot as the man turned towards Steve and observed him. He looked back and forth between Steve and his daughter. “What?”

“Ursula stole his voice,” Cooper chimed in, “We have to help him get it back!”  

“Pleeeeease Daddy, can he come with us?” Lila begged.

Steve bit his lip and shrugged his shoulders helplessly as the man looked over at him once more, an amused expression on his face. “Lila, honey,” the man began slowly. “Steve has to work, he can’t just up and leave the store unattended. He has responsibilities here. What do we say about being responsible?”

Lila pouted. “That it’s important.”

“I’m sorry honey, but we have to go,” the man smiled fondly at Lila. “We’re already running late. How about this... Why don’t we come back next weekend?” He then side-eyed Steve with a knowing smirk. “Can true love wait another week?” He asked dryly. 

Both kids turned to him. “Will you be okay, Steve?” Cooper asked.

Steve nodded, grinning at Cooper and Lila while giving them two thumbs up.

They waved at him enthusiastically as they raced towards the entrance of the shop. The man shook his head and let out a laugh. “Better get some tea for your throat kid,” he suggested, looking entirely too all-knowing and muttering under his breath quietly so that his kids wouldn’t overhear. “And maybe get a slice of some really greasy pizza - I hear they’re the perfect hangover cure.”

Steve let out a chuckle that almost sounded like a gasp. He nodded sheepishly and the man left, his shoulders shaking with laughter as he did so.

“That was incredibly entertaining,” Darcy commented as she appeared next to him. She leaned against the counter and tilted her head. “Was wondering how you were gonna dig yourself out of that hole you found yourself in when she wanted to go look for your true love.”

Smiling, Steve just shrugged. It had easily been the highlight of his day. He loved interacting with kids when they were Cooper and Lila’s age. Life hadn’t yet dumped it’s lessons on them and they were still able to believe in fairy tales and magic. That kind of innocence was pure and if a five minute interaction could help them keep that innocence even longer, well, Steve was willing to indulge in a little white lie.

After all, what could it hurt?

 

\--

 

Ninety minutes later, Steve was feeling a lot better. His headache was gone - courtesy of Darcy, who had taken pity on him and given him some Advil and a nice, steaming mug of tea, which helped soothed this throat immensely. His voice was even starting to come back, albeit it was accompanied with a slight rasp. All in all, he felt somewhat like a normal functioning human being again.

The store had slowed down in activity; the bright and sunny day that they had all started with gave way to dark and ominous rain clouds rolling in. As time passed, more and more customers began to leave, probably in hopes of avoiding the rainstorm that was about to fall upon them. Steve and Darcy worked in comfortable silence, cleaning and tidying the displays - it looked like it was going to be a slow afternoon, which meant that it wouldn’t take long to close up later on. For Steve, the slow afternoon was a blessing in disguise - it meant that he could continue to recover from his hangover and still coast at his job.

Pounding footsteps could be heard echoing from the hallway, and Steve looked up just in time to see Cooper appear at the front entrance. Cooper spotted him and squealed with excitement, whipping around to wave behind him. “He’s still here Lila! I see him!”

“Hurry up, Auntie Nat!”

At the sound of Lila’s voice, Steve rounded the corner of the cashier desk and frowned, a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach. Behind him, he could hear Darcy begin to snicker as she watched.

Lila appeared in his line of vision pulling a young woman behind her by the hand. The woman just looked confused as she struggled with her shopping bags and her purse, all the while trying to keep Lila from running off without her. “What’s the rush, guys? Your dad said you guys could hang out with me all afternoon. We have lots of time!”

The second Lila saw Steve, she let go of the woman’s hand and went running up to him. Steve bent down to one knee so that he was at eye level with her and smiled. “Hi, Steve!” Lila greeted enthusiastically, and then lowered her voice. “Auntie Nat surprised us at lunch today,” she whispered. “She can be your true love!”

As the woman stepped closer to them, Steve looked up - and froze. His stomach fluttered with equal parts anticipation and dread when he recognized her. They had never talked in person, but it was hard _not_ to notice when Natasha Romanoff walked into the room. They shared a couple classes together and Steve sat directly behind her in their sociology class. Fiery red hair, eyes that were a gorgeous shade of green, and plump red lips… Steve had immediately noticed her from the very first day, but it was her hard working nature and the fact that she was so sure of herself that led to him developing a massive crush on her. She was the complete package of everything he ever wanted in a woman and then some. Three semesters had gone by and not once did he have the courage to talk to her.

And she was right here.

Walking towards him.

_Fuck. What do I do?_

“Didn’t you guys want to go to the arcade? It’s on the other side of the mall… and I thought we could stop by the bakery and get some cookies -”

“Auntie Nat,” Lila interrupted. “We have to ask you something really important.”

Panic filled him. Steve desperately wracked his brain, trying to come up with a way to stop Lila before she could -

“Can you be Steve’s true love?”

For the second time that day, Steve wished the ground would open up and swallow him whole, never to be seen again. He could feel his cheeks turn red, the heat spreading throughout his face and down his neck. He wanted to turn and bash his head repeatedly against the counter, wishing that he had followed his first instinct that morning and never gotten out of bed. He couldn’t remember another time he had ever been this embarrassed.

“Uh… what?” Natasha blinked. Her gaze landed on him and he could see that Natasha somewhat recognized him but couldn’t exactly place him. “Hey… aren’t you in one of my classes?”

Steve nodded dumbly.

“Auntie Nat!” Lila stamped her foot impatiently between them and Natasha’s attention landed on her niece once more. “This is really _important_!”

“Okay… slow down. Explain this to me again.”

“Ursula stole Steve’s voice,” Lila explained. “Can you be his true love?”

“Ursula? From _The Little Mermaid_?”

“The evil sea witch,” Cooper chimed in. He showed his aunt the pad of paper with Steve’s note written on it, holding it out in front of him so she could read it. Steve had no idea how Cooper had gotten his hands on it.  “Remember Auntie Nat? She stole Ariel’s voice. And now she took Steve’s voice, and the only way to get it back is if he finds his true love.”

Natasha looked back and forth between the three of them, understanding dawning on her face. “ _Oh_ , so _this_ is what Clint meant earlier,” she muttered underneath her breath. She looked at Lila’s hopeful expression. “What if I’m not his true love?”

“Just try true love’s kiss! Pleeeease, Auntie Nat?” Lila latched onto her aunt’s legs and hugged her around the knees, begging as she looked up. “Doesn’t Steve look like a prince? I think that’s why Ursula picked him. You need to rescue him before Ursula turns him into a fish and takes him away to eat for dinner!”

Steve watched Natasha as it all played out in front of him. He had no idea how he was ever going to be able to face her again. He was gonna have to drop out of the classes he shared with her and avoid her like the plague for the rest of his college experience. Forget ever mucking up the courage to ask her out on a date - he was doomed from the very start, and all because of a little white lie that he told to a four year old as a joke. He needed to find a hole to throw himself in, ASAP.

“Alright.” Natasha’s voice pulled him from his thoughts and he stared at her in disbelief as she smirked at him.

“Really?” Lila squealed, her wide toothless smile lit up her entire face, looking incredibly happy.

“Okay, let’s give this a try but only because it’s you asking, and you know I can’t resist your sweet smile,” Natasha tapped her niece on the nose, causing the little girl to giggle. “Steve is going to have to stand up though.”

There was no way she was serious about this. There was no way she was actually going to- _How did he even end up in this situation_?

Well, he knew how. He just couldn’t believe it was actually happening.

“Steve, come on,” Cooper urged him, tugging on his sleeve to get him to stand. “Auntie Nat is waiting!”

This whole thing was more than a little weird, but one couldn’t deny the opportunity that it presented. And if there was one thing that could be said about Steve Rogers, it was that he didn’t back down from anything. Even if it was possibly going to blow up in his face. And right now, with the way Natasha was staring at him, it gave him all the courage he needed to stand up and face her head on. Up close, he was able to notice the little details that he otherwise wouldn’t have known if he hadn’t been in close proximity. Her eyes were green, yes, but he could see little flecks of hazel around her irises. And she also smelled really good… he couldn’t tell if it was her natural scent or if it was perfume, but it was intoxicating nonetheless.

“You really have to make it a special kiss, okay Auntie Nat?” Lila instructed. “Like the kind of kisses that Daddy gives Mommy sometimes. A _real_ true love’s kiss.”

“Alright,” Natasha nodded, stepping even closer.

Gently, she grasped the lapels of his store vest and pulled him even closer to her so that their bodies were fitted together. He leaned in automatically, his head dropping and his heart thumping wildly. Their lips slanted together, and it was as if his every sense was honed in on her, wrapped up in her sweet scent, melting at the touch of her skin against his. His arms wrapped around her waist and she kissed him… once, twice, three times. It wasn’t the first time he’d been kissed, but without a doubt, it was easily the best kiss of his life.

And then it was over.

Natasha stepped back, looking as stunned by the kiss as he felt and staring at him with what looked like an almost shy smile.

“Now try talking, Steve!” Lila said, her voice sounding impossibly loud in the empty store. Steve had never been so thankful that there were no customers around. He already knew he’d never be able to live it down with Darcy witnessing the entire exchange.

“Uh…” Steve ran a hand through his hair, floundering for words. His throat was scratchy from disuse and he tried to suppress a cough that threatened to break through. “Um… hi?”

“It worked!” Lila screeched, clasping her hands together with glee. “Auntie Nat is your true love!”

“Does this mean we can call you Uncle Steve?” Cooper asked.

“Can I be the flower girl at your wedding?” Lila begged.

“Uh…” Steve awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, his voice going husky again and this time he did cough as he spoke.  “I honestly don’t know how to answer these questions…”

Cooper frowned. “Auntie Nat, it sounds like his voice is going away again. Maybe you better kiss him some more.”

“Wow, Ursula's magic powers are really strong!” Lila said, her eyes widening.

“Okay guys…” Natasha gently pulled her niece and nephew and shuffled them off to the side. “Why don’t you guys just stand here while I talk to Steve, okay? _Don’t move._ ” Steve couldn’t help gulping as she turned back to face him. “So,” she said, lowering her voice slightly. “That was some kiss, huh?”

Steve nodded. “Fireworks,” he barely managed to get out.

“Glad I’m not the only who thinks so,” Natasha reached into her purse and pulled out a pen. She grabbed his arm and quickly wrote her name and number down on his wrist, and he couldn’t help but grin when he saw the inky blue letters and numbers across his skin. “Give me a call sometime. I’d like to at least go on a few dates first before getting married.”

“I’ve noticed you, you know,” Steve blushed when she looked up at him. “At school. I’ve just never had the guts to talk to you…”

“Guess this is fate’s way of helping you out,” Natasha laughed. She winked. “Now I can be _part of your world_ since you’re my true love and all that.”

Steve couldn’t help but smile as she gave him a self assured little smirk and turned to rejoin her niece and nephew. Screw being an adult; maybe fairy tales were real after all.

(He was _so glad_ he got out of bed today!)

 

**Author's Note:**

> If you're gonna leave comments, please let them be nice ones! :)


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